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Post by capitalomnibus on Feb 7, 2020 15:20:21 GMT
Currently on the 55. I respect this is just a sample of one journey but I can only assume the introduction of front door boarding has not been as successful on the 55 as maybe the 8 or the 267. On LT312 the rear door reader is still functioning whilst the middle door one’s do not. Passengers were still using all the doors on the bus. A lot that came through the middle tried to touch in but because the reader was switched off no fare was collected. A lady i saw entering through the rear door with her bank card to hand, looked at the sign that said ‘not in use’ on the reader and opt not touch - another fare missed. In order for this to work in my opinion, there needs to be area wide roll-out. Intermixing front door only NRMs routes with Open boarding NRMs routes is not working for everyday passengers who just want to board the bus. The other day I saw a group of lads wait for the back door on the LT to open on the 8 they was waiting and driver didn't open the door so they just pressed the emergency exit button and all got on that way. As you have mentioned plenty people are still using the middle and rear doors on the 55 LT. Saw a few ex colleagues on the 55 a week or two back. Asking them how it was etc. Some said better, but those that check walk to the front, some just go and sit down. I even had to direct one person to the front door when he stopped the bus and was banging the door as the driver wouldn't open the rear. Whilst on the subject of the 55, the mornings on Lea Bridge Rd have eased off slightly of passenger numbers, I can only think people are either staggering times or using alternative travel patterns.
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Post by VWH1414 on Feb 17, 2020 18:33:11 GMT
My journey today: 302 - VWH1414 - Mill Hill Broadway > Roe Green 204 - TE1313 - Roe Green > Kingsbury Station Then later on: 324 - DE866 - Kingsbury Station > Brent Cross Shopping Centre Then from here I had some spare time, so decided to do the following: 210 - TE905 - Brent Cross Shopping Centre > Archway - A lot of people suggested the 210 as a good route to ride in another thread because of the scenic views around Hampstead Heath and I must say it was probably one of the best bus rides I've had in London! Reminds me very much of my scenic journeys on the Southern Vectis buses around the Isle of Wight. I'm also very happy I managed to do it on one of the 4 Euro VI TEs. 43 - BDE2628 - Archway > Muswell Hill - Was initially just going to get a 134 straight to North Finchley, however when this turned up first I couldn't pass the opportunity of trying out the E400City Electrics and I must say I'm very impressed overall. Feels very weight though to not feel the diesel engine kick in after accelerating like on hybrids - but was a very swift ride. Love the interior on the Cities. 134 - OME2667 - Muswell Hill > North Finchley - Was very happy when I got off the 43 to find OME2667 on its way down the road and I must say I love the Metrodecker, especially the interior - I really like what Optare have done inside with the light designs, makes it feel very modern and overall just had a nice interior. I really hope to see any issues ironed out so we can see plenty more of these alongside the Cities. Also a decent amount of OMEs were out and about today. I notice some aren't tracking though, which is why it makes it look like not many have been entering service - OME2656/2669 are ones that are out today but not showing up. 125 - VWH2141 - North Finchley > Grahame Park - Getting on this meant that I have now been on one from every single batch of MkII VWHs at Metroline (All of 65/16/66/17/67 reg). 186 - VW1279 - Grahame Park > Mill Hill Broadway
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Post by george on Feb 17, 2020 18:44:32 GMT
My journey today: 302 - VWH1414 - Mill Hill Broadway > Roe Green 204 - TE1313 - Roe Green > Kingsbury Station Then later on: 324 - DE866 - Kingsbury Station > Brent Cross Shopping Centre Then from here I had some spare time, so decided to do the following: 210 - TE905 - Brent Cross Shopping Centre > Archway - A lot of people suggested the 210 as a good route to ride in another thread because of the scenic views around Hampstead Heath and I must say it was probably one of the best bus rides I've had in London! Reminds me very much of my scenic journeys on the Southern Vectis buses around the Isle of Wight. I'm also very happy I managed to do it on one of the 4 Euro VI TEs. 43 - BDE2628 - Archway > Muswell Hill - Was initially just going to get a 134 straight to North Finchley, however when this turned up first I couldn't pass the opportunity of trying out the E400City Electrics and I must say I'm very impressed overall. Feels very weight though to not feel the diesel engine kick in after accelerating like on hybrids - but was a very swift ride. Love the interior on the Cities. 134 - OME2667 - Muswell Hill > North Finchley - Was very happy when I got off the 43 to find OME2667 on its way down the road and I must say I love the Metrodecker, especially the interior - I really like what Optare have done inside with the light designs, makes it feel very modern and overall just had a nice interior. I really hope to see any issues ironed out so we can see plenty more of these alongside the Cities. Also a decent amount of OMEs were out and about today. I notice some aren't tracking though, which is why it makes it look like not many have been entering service - OME2656/2669 are ones that are out today but not showing up. 125 - VWH2141 - North Finchley > Grahame Park - Getting on this meant that I have now been on one from every single batch of MkII VWHs at Metroline (All of 65/16/66/17/67 reg). 186 - VW1279 - Grahame Park > Mill Hill Broadway 210 is such a brilliant route although not done all of it, I do think Archway has some really good routes actually big fan of the 134 and W7 as well.
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Post by VWH1414 on Feb 17, 2020 18:54:36 GMT
My journey today: 302 - VWH1414 - Mill Hill Broadway > Roe Green 204 - TE1313 - Roe Green > Kingsbury Station Then later on: 324 - DE866 - Kingsbury Station > Brent Cross Shopping Centre Then from here I had some spare time, so decided to do the following: 210 - TE905 - Brent Cross Shopping Centre > Archway - A lot of people suggested the 210 as a good route to ride in another thread because of the scenic views around Hampstead Heath and I must say it was probably one of the best bus rides I've had in London! Reminds me very much of my scenic journeys on the Southern Vectis buses around the Isle of Wight. I'm also very happy I managed to do it on one of the 4 Euro VI TEs. 43 - BDE2628 - Archway > Muswell Hill - Was initially just going to get a 134 straight to North Finchley, however when this turned up first I couldn't pass the opportunity of trying out the E400City Electrics and I must say I'm very impressed overall. Feels very weight though to not feel the diesel engine kick in after accelerating like on hybrids - but was a very swift ride. Love the interior on the Cities. 134 - OME2667 - Muswell Hill > North Finchley - Was very happy when I got off the 43 to find OME2667 on its way down the road and I must say I love the Metrodecker, especially the interior - I really like what Optare have done inside with the light designs, makes it feel very modern and overall just had a nice interior. I really hope to see any issues ironed out so we can see plenty more of these alongside the Cities. Also a decent amount of OMEs were out and about today. I notice some aren't tracking though, which is why it makes it look like not many have been entering service - OME2656/2669 are ones that are out today but not showing up. 125 - VWH2141 - North Finchley > Grahame Park - Getting on this meant that I have now been on one from every single batch of MkII VWHs at Metroline (All of 65/16/66/17/67 reg). 186 - VW1279 - Grahame Park > Mill Hill Broadway 210 is such a brilliant route although not done all of it, I do think Archway has some really good routes actually big fan of the 134 and W7 as well. I agree - Never actually ventured to Archway before and it is quite an interesting area with a lot of routes. The 43/134 are really nice between Archway and Friern Barnet. Shame I'm not a regular in the area really - pretty scenic areas/routes there. This is the first time I've ventured further than GG on the 210 as most of my journeys consist of GG - Brent Cross and vice versa - I also like the fleet that runs on the 210, also a very reliable route, W do a good job with it.
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Post by george on Feb 17, 2020 19:12:50 GMT
210 is such a brilliant route although not done all of it, I do think Archway has some really good routes actually big fan of the 134 and W7 as well. I agree - Never actually ventured to Archway before and it is quite an interesting area with a lot of routes. The 43/134 are really nice between Archway and Friern Barnet. Shame I'm not a regular in the area really - pretty scenic areas/routes there. This is the first time I've ventured further than GG on the 210 as most of my journeys consist of GG - Brent Cross and vice versa - I also like the fleet that runs on the 210, also a very reliable route, W do a good job with it. Don't go to Archway a lot but whenever I have done I've liked the routes there. Done the 43 as far as Archway from London Bridge and the 134 as far as Muswell Hill so never gone beyond there to Friern Barnet. I didn't think much of the 43 was it a bad route? no it's just not a favourite of mine but that's just a matter of opinion maybe if I do the full route I will think differently. My most used Archway route would be the 17 but always go on it around central London. richard is a local to Archway so he has a good knowledge on what are the best routes in the area. If I was going to pick an area that as a whole I think have the best routes then I would have to pick Kingston.
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Post by VWH1414 on Feb 17, 2020 19:29:11 GMT
I agree - Never actually ventured to Archway before and it is quite an interesting area with a lot of routes. The 43/134 are really nice between Archway and Friern Barnet. Shame I'm not a regular in the area really - pretty scenic areas/routes there. This is the first time I've ventured further than GG on the 210 as most of my journeys consist of GG - Brent Cross and vice versa - I also like the fleet that runs on the 210, also a very reliable route, W do a good job with it. Don't go to Archway a lot but whenever I have done I've liked the routes there. Done the 43 as far as Archway from London Bridge and the 134 as far as Muswell Hill so never gone beyond there to Friern Barnet. I didn't think much of the 43 was it a bad route? no it's just not a favourite of mine but that's just a matter of opinion maybe if I do the full route I will think differently. My most used Archway route would be the 17 but always go on it around central London. richard is a local to Archway so he has a good knowledge on what are the best routes in the area. If I was going to pick an area that as a whole I think have the best routes then I would have to pick Kingston. I've never done the 43/134 before, so have only done the Archway to Friern Barnet section (So basically opposite of you ) and that section is pretty good, nice change from the usual scenery of Edgware/Mill Hill/Kingsbury. Never done any routes in Kingston before (I never usually venture outside of N/NW London, even in Central London I've only ever done the 507/RV1) so I have no idea how nice the Kingston routes are. I'd say my top 5 most scenic routes that I have actually travelled on to date go something like this (In order): 1. 210 2. 107 3. 43/134 (Section I went on both routes shared) 4. 240 5. 292 Considering 292 is my fifth I'm sure you can tell most routes I use are not very scenic - generally I only use buses to get to where I need, but today I just decided to try the 210 and also do one of each electric on the 43/134 so basically killed several birds with one stone today.
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Post by richard on Feb 17, 2020 19:49:08 GMT
I agree - Never actually ventured to Archway before and it is quite an interesting area with a lot of routes. The 43/134 are really nice between Archway and Friern Barnet. Shame I'm not a regular in the area really - pretty scenic areas/routes there. This is the first time I've ventured further than GG on the 210 as most of my journeys consist of GG - Brent Cross and vice versa - I also like the fleet that runs on the 210, also a very reliable route, W do a good job with it. Don't go to Archway a lot but whenever I have done I've liked the routes there. Done the 43 as far as Archway from London Bridge and the 134 as far as Muswell Hill so never gone beyond there to Friern Barnet. I didn't think much of the 43 was it a bad route? no it's just not a favourite of mine but that's just a matter of opinion maybe if I do the full route I will think differently. My most used Archway route would be the 17 but always go on it around central London. richard is a local to Archway so he has a good knowledge on what are the best routes in the area. If I was going to pick an area that as a whole I think have the best routes then I would have to pick Kingston. Well my favourite routes are 210,W7,17,134,263 my least favourite 390,4,143,C11,W5 the W5 not really much to see it dose a lot of back streets and gose around the houses the buses it uses isn't that interesting. The C11 very similar but dose go to some interesting places Hampstead and Swiss Cottage the DEs are much better to the OS. The 4 isn't to bad but dose go around the house's and takes forever to get to Archway that's why I avoid it if I going into central and take more direct way. The 390 was a good route before re routing to Victoria and introduction of LTs personally the NHG section should have been kept it was fine as It was. The W7 and 134 are very similar at the Northern end of the routes very interesting places they pass through the Wealthy streets of Muswell Hill and Highgate respectively. The 263 is very useful for me if I don't want to get caught up in driver change overs at Upper Holloway but I hardly ever go north of the route I only use it between Archway and Holloway/Highbury. I agree with VWH1414 the 210 is a fantastic route the scenery is amazing between Archway and Golders Green and the allocation is fantastic very well presented but I would like to see more of the 332 MMC strays onto the route
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Post by rj131 on Feb 17, 2020 20:37:55 GMT
Don't go to Archway a lot but whenever I have done I've liked the routes there. Done the 43 as far as Archway from London Bridge and the 134 as far as Muswell Hill so never gone beyond there to Friern Barnet. I didn't think much of the 43 was it a bad route? no it's just not a favourite of mine but that's just a matter of opinion maybe if I do the full route I will think differently. My most used Archway route would be the 17 but always go on it around central London. richard is a local to Archway so he has a good knowledge on what are the best routes in the area. If I was going to pick an area that as a whole I think have the best routes then I would have to pick Kingston. Well my favourite routes are 210,W7,17,134,263 my least favourite 390,4,143,C11,W5 the W5 not really much to see it dose a lot of back streets and gose around the houses the buses it uses isn't that interesting. The C11 very similar but dose go to some interesting places Hampstead and Swiss Cottage the DEs are much better to the OS. The 4 isn't to bad but dose go around the house's and takes forever to get to Archway that's why I avoid it if I going into central and take more direct way. The 390 was a good route before re routing to Victoria and introduction of LTs personally the NHG section should have been kept it was fine as It was. The W7 and 134 are very similar at the Northern end of the routes very interesting places they pass through the Wealthy streets of Muswell Hill and Highgate respectively. The 263 is very useful for me if I don't want to get caught up in driver change overs at Upper Holloway but I hardly ever go north of the route I only use it between Archway and Holloway/Highbury. I agree with VWH1414 the 210 is a fantastic route the scenery is amazing between Archway and Golders Green and the allocation is fantastic very well presented but I would like to see more of the 332 MMC strays onto the route I think you need to proof read your posts a bit better because that was very tough to read
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Post by Dillon95 on Feb 19, 2020 21:26:29 GMT
I went to Crystal Palace Park this afternoon. 269 - Sidcup to Bromley 227 - Bromley to Penge 358 - Crystal Palace to Bromley 269 - Bromley to Sidcup
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Post by rj131 on Feb 19, 2020 23:21:58 GMT
Was running round all over London today, main objectives were to do one of the Hydrogen buses on the 444, one of the new BYD Cities on the 94 and a new DELs (well not that new anymore) on the 112. LJ61CKD | 158 LJ13JWP | 444 BN14VZH | 141 LB69JRV | 94 LK64ECF | 112 YX19OVD | 112 LK58CRX | 190 YX16OAA | C10 YX61BYD | 300 BJ11DVT | 473 Firstly from Stratford was an end to end on the 158 to get to Chingford Mount, where I could track down a hydrogen on the 444. I could have taken the 97 which has a much shorter routing between the two places but figured the 158 would be quicker because it dodges Walthamstow Central and all its diabolical traffic. It’s a relatively boring route, nothing offensive about it but nothing really nice either. Also I’m really happy that this route isn’t absolutely plagued with constant regulation and heel-dragging, which happens on the vast majority of Arriva routes and I feared they might ruin this one with it too, but thankfully it seems not. Next the 444, more specifically one of the hydrogens which were an absolute b*gger to track down. I waited for the 444 around where the 158 and W16 stand at the centre of Chingford mount. Initially it said there was a 444 in nine minutes (a StreetLite so no thank you) and then another which happened to be BH63102 in 15 minutes (all heading for Turnpike Lane). The first StreetLite appeared exactly nine minutes later, but even up until it arrived it still said BH63102 was 15 minutes away even though I’d already waited nine minutes. A minute or so later it completely disappeared (later on I found something very interesting! *) and then said the next 444 was in 26 minutes - great 😑 and with that one also being a StreetLite it looked like there was no sign of any hydrogens and I nearly abandoned it altogether. Just as I was about to give up, unbelievably all of a sudden it said WSH62996 (my own photo this time lol) was just 3 minutes away, so I managed to get it after all, after a lot of patience and perseverance. I won’t go into what the bus was like as I’ve already talked about it in the TT thread, but it felt very dangerous on the North Circular as the bus could barely go faster than 30mph, even slower when going uphill. At TPL one of the ex-Stagecoach G3s was approaching on the 141 so I decided to take it down to Manor House. It certainly felt very very odd being on an Arriva route, in a Stagecoach vehicle - to the untrained eye anyway. I took the tube from Manor House to Marble Arch to get one of the new BCEs on the 94, and BCE47024 arrived as soon as I got to the bus stop, which was good as the bus stop had no shelter and it was pouring with rain. It was an absolutely amazing bus and I think these are much smoother than the Metroline ones, overall I prefer these much more as the interior is much nicer. These buses suit the 94 incredibly and I hope we see a lot more BCEs popping up in the future. Hopefully the 148 will also get them on the next retender. After getting off the 94 at Acton Green I walked over to Chiswick Park Station to go to Ealing Broadway to hopefully intercept one of the four DELs out on the 112, this was also a difficult find too. When I arrived at Ealing Broadway the 112 was in absolute tatters. As soon as I got outside the station, classic E200 DEL2063 was due in 1 minute, and the next 112 after this one of the new MMCs DEL2600) was a whopping 26 minutes away, and as I was at the terminus I did check LVF to make sure the huge gap showing wasn’t just because of a driver not yet logging into iBus, but it definitely wasn’t. Eight of the ten 112 buses out at that time were heading in the Brent Cross direction (some curtailments obviously to get some buses going the other direction as soon as possible) and just two heading for EB so that 25 minute gap was certainly legit. Because of the gap I just took DEL2063 end-to-end up to Brent Cross, and in the opposite direction the North Circular was absolutely gridlocked which explained why the 112 was in bits. The journey up to Brent Cross was actually very entertaining. Someone who was previously sitting where I was also clearly very fed up with the route. As the weather was awful and all the windows were steamed up, someone took the opportunity to write ‘The 112 is sh*t!’ in the steamed up window, which let’s be honest they’re not wrong!! ( rif153 was it you?!? I know how much you love the route LOL) I had to take a picture of it but I’m not going to put it on Flickr or attach it here as it may get taken down for containing bad language lol. If anyone really REALLY wants to see a picture of it they can private message me lol but it’s probably just better to take my word for it The journey up to Brent Cross only took around half an hour, and I walked into the Shopping Centre for a little while (but really not long, only a toilet break). When I came out, somehow DEL2600 which originally 25 minutes behind my bus at Ealing Broadway managed to make up all that time and was due in just five minutes when I came back out. That driver must have absolutely caned it up there! And unbelievably when I was checking when DEL2600 was due Metroline had somehow nursed the 112 back to perfect 10-minute headways. Only god knows how they managed it but that is some going to have as much as 25-minute gaps closed up back to perfect operation in about 45 minutes. That is unbelievable route controlling and I doff my hat to them. I took DEL2600 all the way back down to EB again and this time the bus was absolutely packed to the rafters. I’m glad that was over with as the 112 is such a hateful route, but it’s saving grace is that it’s also a fast one so it’s actually quite fun to ride despite it’s absolutely wretched scenery, or rather lack of it. It’s still up there as one of my most hated routes though. Back at EB I headed back to Central London via some important points of interest and then headed over to Canning Town as I always try to ride I route I haven’t yet been on, so I took the 300 down to Prince Regent, not really much point in doing the route really as by the time I got there it was dark, couple that with steamed up windows I couldn’t see hardly anything. After getting to Prince Regent I took the 473 back to Stratford and went home. * When I drive home I have to drive past Lea Interchange bus garage (and this is purely just the route I take home, and nothing to do with deliberately driving past it to have a peep inside.. promise!! ), and as I was driving past I saw BH63102 on a recovery truck being towed back to LI, which most likely explained why it all of a sudden disappeared when I was waiting for it. On the other hand though as I did the 444 at about 10:30 this morning I highly doubt the BH would have broken down around then and was waiting all day until being towed back in the evening, so it must have broken down later on. Still a coincidence though when I thought to myself ‘I wonder if the bus is having issues which is why it’s been saying due in 15 and not moving for ages!’ I habit of jinxing things like that
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Post by Deleted on Feb 29, 2020 17:35:12 GMT
Had a very aggressive driver on a 147 today. From the minute I boarded he was on the horn every second. It can be very tedious for passengers listening to this.
He also blocked the way for a car when he could have held back, in the end the car backed down and reversed. I know we all have bad days but drivers sometimes forget they are driving a bus.
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Post by ssmoquette on Mar 6, 2020 20:51:42 GMT
Here was my bus journey today last Saturday:
First off all I got the 237 to Shepherd's Bush from home. The 237 has good VW buses, which are quite common as they were the principal order of Metroline in the early 2010's. Overall, pretty standard and although the buses were adapted to reduce emissions because of the low emission bus corridor along Chiswick High Road, it didn't affect the engines which are still quite nice.
I then got the Southern train to Harrow & Wealdstone. I'm not going to go on about it because this is the bus forum but it is a very convenient link for me to get to north London without having to change twice, usually involving Willesden Junction or West Hampstead. The only disadvantage is that the trains are hourly, I would definately increase the frequency as it's very well loaded, possibly with one 'all stations' service to Watford Junction and the current service to Milton Keynes. It also started heavily raining at this point...
After getting off at Harrow & Wealdstone I got the 340 to Edgware. It's a really nice route and I'm very glad I rode this instead of going the more direct way offered by other routes. It has a nice hilly and outer-suburban feel, which is appropiate given how close this route runs to the edge of the Green Belt. The buses are also interesting as although the route is run by Arriva, the buses seem to be ex-Stagecoach, given the red and blue floor and moquette within the bus. I have basically completed this route, as I have already completed it between the two major Harrow stations. Overall, very nice route. Seven out of ten!
I then got the 79 to Alperton. The route is also very nice, with the route being suburban with some light hills between Edgware and Preston Road, with the route heading quite suddenly into an urban town centre by Wembley Central station and being a mixed road of some shops and some houses down to Alperton, where the bus terminates at the Sainsbury's. It is a fairly typical supermarket terminus with the route terminating on the approach to a roundabout where there are some light industrial buildings. I also got an SP, one of my favourite types of buses which still look modern 10 years after they were designed
After a quick stop off in the Sainsbury's to get a couple snacks, I rode the 483 to Hanger Lane. Not much to say as it was a short ride as I was making my way home. I was thinking about if I should go to Ealing Common, but I felt an urge to go along the A40 with possible bus kickdown, which leads me to...
The 95 to East Acton. This route was alright with the bus having a very loud cooling fan which made it quite difficult for me to hear the engine. However, at least the A40 had some interesting industrial estates which gives it a certain character that's unique.
Then I got the 272 back home. Not much to say, the new DLE's aren't great and I prefer the old buses from 2007. They had some character, unlike the new Enviro200's...
And that was my trip!
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Post by vjaska on Mar 6, 2020 22:44:36 GMT
Here was my bus journey today last Saturday: First off all I got the 237 to Shepherd's Bush from home. The 237 has good VW buses, which are quite common as they were the principal order of Metroline in the early 2010's. Overall, pretty standard and although the buses were adapted to reduce emissions because of the low emission bus corridor along Chiswick High Road, it didn't affect the engines which are still quite nice. I then got the Southern train to Harrow & Wealdstone. I'm not going to go on about it because this is the bus forum but it is a very convenient link for me to get to north London without having to change twice, usually involving Willesden Junction or West Hampstead. The only disadvantage is that the trains are hourly, I would definately increase the frequency as it's very well loaded, possibly with one 'all stations' service to Watford Junction and the current service to Milton Keynes. It also started heavily raining at this point... After getting off at Harrow & Wealdstone I got the 340 to Edgware. It's a really nice route and I'm very glad I rode this instead of going the more direct way offered by other routes. It has a nice hilly and outer-suburban feel, which is appropiate given how close this route runs to the edge of the Green Belt. The buses are also interesting as although the route is run by Arriva, the buses seem to be ex-Stagecoach, given the red and blue floor and moquette within the bus. I have basically completed this route, as I have already completed it between the two major Harrow stations. Overall, very nice route. Seven out of ten! I then got the 79 to Alperton. The route is also very nice, with the route being suburban with some light hills between Edgware and Preston Road, with the route heading quite suddenly into an urban town centre by Wembley Central station and being a mixed road of some shops and some houses down to Alperton, where the bus terminates at the Sainsbury's. It is a fairly typical supermarket terminus with the route terminating on the approach to a roundabout where there are some light industrial buildings. I also got an SP, one of my favourite types of buses which still look modern 10 years after they were designed After a quick stop off in the Sainsbury's to get a couple snacks, I rode the 483 to Hanger Lane. Not much to say as it was a short ride as I was making my way home. I was thinking about if I should go to Ealing Common, but I felt an urge to go along the A40 with possible bus kickdown, which leads me to... The 95 to East Acton. This route was alright with the bus having a very loud cooling fan which made it quite difficult for me to hear the engine. However, at least the A40 had some interesting industrial estates which gives it a certain character that's unique. Then I got the 272 back home. Not much to say, the new DLE's aren't great and I prefer the old buses from 2007. They had some character, unlike the new Enviro200's... And that was my trip! The bus you had on the 340 is not it's usual allocation - usually you'd expect T's or even an Arriva interior HV's rather than an ex Stagecoach HV although they can turn out at times. The MMC's don't have character (what modern bus does TBH) but personally are a million times better than old style Enviro 200's which are awful and were an afterthought to passengers.
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Post by greenboy on Mar 6, 2020 23:06:06 GMT
Here was my bus journey today last Saturday: . I then got the Southern train to Harrow & Wealdstone. I'm not going to go on about it because this is the bus forum but it is a very convenient link for me to get to north London without having to change twice, usually involving Willesden Junction or West Hampstead. The only disadvantage is that the trains are hourly, I would definately increase the frequency as it's very well loaded, possibly with one 'all stations' service to Watford Junction and the current service to Milton Keynes. This certainly is a very useful service and I'm sure a half hourly frequency could be more than justified but it's the usual problem of track capacity.
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Post by rif153 on Mar 8, 2020 21:04:23 GMT
Here was my bus journey today last Saturday: First off all I got the 237 to Shepherd's Bush from home. The 237 has good VW buses, which are quite common as they were the principal order of Metroline in the early 2010's. Overall, pretty standard and although the buses were adapted to reduce emissions because of the low emission bus corridor along Chiswick High Road, it didn't affect the engines which are still quite nice. I then got the Southern train to Harrow & Wealdstone. I'm not going to go on about it because this is the bus forum but it is a very convenient link for me to get to north London without having to change twice, usually involving Willesden Junction or West Hampstead. The only disadvantage is that the trains are hourly, I would definately increase the frequency as it's very well loaded, possibly with one 'all stations' service to Watford Junction and the current service to Milton Keynes. It also started heavily raining at this point... After getting off at Harrow & Wealdstone I got the 340 to Edgware. It's a really nice route and I'm very glad I rode this instead of going the more direct way offered by other routes. It has a nice hilly and outer-suburban feel, which is appropiate given how close this route runs to the edge of the Green Belt. The buses are also interesting as although the route is run by Arriva, the buses seem to be ex-Stagecoach, given the red and blue floor and moquette within the bus. I have basically completed this route, as I have already completed it between the two major Harrow stations. Overall, very nice route. Seven out of ten! I then got the 79 to Alperton. The route is also very nice, with the route being suburban with some light hills between Edgware and Preston Road, with the route heading quite suddenly into an urban town centre by Wembley Central station and being a mixed road of some shops and some houses down to Alperton, where the bus terminates at the Sainsbury's. It is a fairly typical supermarket terminus with the route terminating on the approach to a roundabout where there are some light industrial buildings. I also got an SP, one of my favourite types of buses which still look modern 10 years after they were designed After a quick stop off in the Sainsbury's to get a couple snacks, I rode the 483 to Hanger Lane. Not much to say as it was a short ride as I was making my way home. I was thinking about if I should go to Ealing Common, but I felt an urge to go along the A40 with possible bus kickdown, which leads me to... The 95 to East Acton. This route was alright with the bus having a very loud cooling fan which made it quite difficult for me to hear the engine. However, at least the A40 had some interesting industrial estates which gives it a certain character that's unique. Then I got the 272 back home. Not much to say, the new DLE's aren't great and I prefer the old buses from 2007. They had some character, unlike the new Enviro200's... And that was my trip! Sounds like a pretty enjoyable day. I do agree with what others have said about the usefulness of the Milton Keynes-East Croydon service, I believe they should be on the tube map so people became aware of the fantastic connections that service offers, the ability to go from Balham to Bletchley, or Harrow to Croydon on the train is a remarkable opportunity for cross London connectivity. Of course sadly because that line is so useful its become a popular freight route which strengthens the case for more freight routes but that's another matter, a signalling upgrade would be great on that line bit that's more wishful thinking than a genuine prospect.
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